Chapter Text
Eggsy squeezed his eyes closed, tried to avoid the salty ocean water and hopefully, when he could not see maybe he could not feel the excruciating pain roaming over his body. The waves kept splashing on his face, he hardly heard a thing and a sky above was too dark to light up any of his prospects.
His mind was flooded with his mother and little sister’s images. He didn’t kiss them when he left this morning, he didn’t tell them how much he loved them and ironically, he did tell his mom he would be back by dinner, he made her wait. Eggsy won’t have a chance to take Daisy to her first ballet class, will never has a chance to give her future boyfriend a fierce lecture. He haven’t had enough time with his family yet, and probably, he never will.
How could he end up like this? After everything he has been through, from the aimless cocky boy who spent his time running around those dark stinky alleys to a fucking gentlemen spy, a man whose life eventually had some meaning. This kind of reality was unacceptable and Eggsy hated the fact that he could not do anything about it, apparently losing his control. He coughed then felt the metallic taste on his tongue, he was bleeding inside, literally.
Surprisingly, Eggsy was not scared, he was angry, because he knew he didn’t fail his mission, he was betrayed. More than that, Kingsman was betrayed. They had a mole in their organization, gouged the system from its roots from the inside out. The list of all the active agents was exposed and their resources has been cut off with no reason, they could not retreat and there was no way out. As a Kingsman, they had to fight even without any chance of winning. And Eggsy did, he ended up beaten, his face was swollen and covered in blood, he was both mentally and physically exhausted but he fought.
Yet Kingsman has fallen.
The last thing transferred to his glasses was the shaky and panic voice he had never heard before from his mentor Percival, told him, no, shouted him to run then he went silence. Guess he didn’t make it, Eggsy thought. And he knew he was dying also, so aware of it. Eggsy heaved a long sigh with maybe everything left in his lungs, he didn’t thank that old man either. He wanted to open his goddamn eyes but his bruised eyelids was already so swelling up to do so, ‘fuck’, Eggsy murmured to himself. At least he was still able to feel the weight of the medal his dad had given him on his slightly rising up and down chest, and he suddenly remembered back to the day when he was little, when his dad was alive. He had promised him to protect his mother, protect their family at all costs, what would Eggsy tell the man when he meet him?
And oh how he missed the ashy, sorrowful sky of London which he has hated so much for all of his life, the humidity hovered in the air was once so tender and now it stung his skin like flame. So this was it, he was at the end of the road, full of regret. Eggsy’s bosom inhaled not air but the poisonous raging heat and exhaled entirely his soul, when he tried to snap his eyes open again then anchored his sight on the inky black sky, he missed this feeling already, being alive.
However, he knew his chance for survival was nil and predictably the abrupt silence came. Eggsy breathed out one last time, released some bubbles of air into the thick ocean. Then a buildup of disagreeable feelings combined with the piercing chill and the taste of briny water assaulted his nerves. He had an endless sinking sensation until he couldn’t feel anything anymore.
***
Eggsy loved the smell of earth and crude iron, they reminded him of vigor, beginning and also the end. When he was small and his dad was busy working, as a Kingsman, he eventually knew about it after he became one himself, Eggsy usually sneaked out to go wandering around those constructions nearby his house. It was noisy and dirty and absolutely a reckless thing to do at his age by then but he indulged it so much. The scaffoldings outside those half-done buildings were a dream to a boy like Eggsy, he had so much fantasies about it, well, climbing it. He broke his arm once when he was nine and the other parts several times after but it has never stopped his fervor and he thought it never would. But then his dad died and everything just simply changed.
He still remembered that nostalgic earthy smell when he fell off the wooden planks, landed on the ground with his front torso, it was everything but this. Eggsy did realized surrounding him was no longer the ocean, he could breathe and thank God he was dry. The boy noticed his suspicious circumstance but too weary to be skeptical about it, he could feel himself digging the soil, fingers coated with searing dirt. And Eggsy smelled fire. He was too familiar with this scent because of all the explosions he has caused and of course been through. So he didn’t know whether he should perceived this as a good news or not but he was somewhere else.
Eggsy forced his eyes open but just made half way there and his vision was terribly blurred that he could only make out light and shapes. However it was enough for Eggsy to acknowledge his presence, pathetically lying on the front yard of a burned mansion. He had no idea how did he end up here but at least when he was floating on the sea, he seemed to be kind of heroic.
Eggsy closed his eyes, tried to save his energy if there was any piece left, and suddenly he heard footsteps approached him. Eggsy switched on his fighting mode instantly, feeling his taut nerves throbbing. The footsteps were steady and gingerly, almost soundless. Well trained, Eggsy thought. And he knew he would stand no chance if he or she came with an unfriendly intention.
“Merlin, do you copy?”
So ‘she’ it is.
The boy didn’t know why but he actually felt relieved, he remained still though finally relaxed his intense muscles and let out an unnoticeable light sigh.
“I am not quite sure. He literally came out of nowhere.”
Hey girl, I had been lying here before you came.
“Unarmed and badly injured. He’s a tough one.”
Thanks, mate. I can see you raising your eyebrows down here. And shit, his gun.
After that, Eggsy could clearly feel the exhaustion spreading through his body. He hardly heard her since her voice became smaller and smaller as if it has turned into a whisper. His eyelids felt so heavy and he didn’t try to fight back anymore.
“Roger that. Lancelot out.”
Eggsy’s heart skipped a beat at that name then he unwillingly let the darkness swallowed him up, again.